Drink
by The Writer's Life
Summary: The Doctor takes a moment to mourn yet appreciate the beauty that he lost.


**A/N: Hello, everyone! Life has been absolutely crazy, so I haven't been able to write very much, but here I am! This is my first Doctor Who fanfiction, and I think it's halfway decent. Just a little idea I've had in my mind. Yes, it's post-Doomsday, but I had to do one. Anyways, enjoy :)**

**Drink**

Rose Tyler enjoyed a drink every now and then. When she and the Doctor went to alien planets, she would never get full-on drunk, but she would take a sample of the alcohol a new planet had to offer. There was a variation of a margarita on a planet three solar systems away, a refined, smooth alcohol in a galaxy so far from Earth that it would never be discovered, and a mix between whiskey and vodka that had left her dizzy after just one sip in a highly cultured place. The Doctor never drank, though. "Haven't needed a drink in nine hundred years," he would chuckle as he slipped his hands into his pockets. "Never know what's going to mess with this old head and make it buzz, and you sure don't want me drunk-driving the TARDIS. We could end up... anywhere!" He said this every time, and every time, Rose laughed and teased him for being a spoilsport.

The Doctor took Rose to an uninhabited planet one day. As soon as they stepped from the TARDIS, they had been overcome by the beauty and the stillness. There were tranquil pools of cerulean water, and fields and fields of wild grass that grew up to their waists. The Doctor and his companion has arrived at dusk, so the sky was painted a deep orange and pink with undertones of blood red and sunshine yellow. They didn't speak, but Rose slipped back into the TARDIS to retrieve a cheap bottle of wine from the Earth before reappearing at the Doctor's side. She put it into her bag, and they walked off hand in hand before finding a cliff that overlooked a dazzling splay of fields. Neither one wanted to shatter the calm silence, and sat together in the quiet for nearly ten minutes.

"It's beautiful," Rose breathed, finally speaking. She took the bottle of wine, along with a narrow glass, and poured just enough for one sip. Without even looking at the Doctor, she drained the glass and then put all evidence back in her purse.

"Every time!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Why do you take a drink every time?"

Rose smiled at him. "I think that something beautiful deserves a little recognition. I bet the reason you can't drink is because you've seen the entire universe, and nothing surprises you anymore. You'll find something beautiful enough to drink to one day, Doctor, and when you do, make sure it's out of this bottle of wine."

After that, they didn't speak. They just watched as the brilliant colors faded into darkness and an abundance of stars lit up the night sky. They left soon after, and when they got back into the TARDIS, Rose gently placed the bottle of wine into a conspicuous drawer.

"You'll find a use for it someday," she assured him, and stood on her tiptoes to kiss his forehead.

. . .

Throughout the months, the Doctor and Rose visited dozens of planets, all with various levels of beauty. They went to one with buildings of pure glass, one with flowers of every color of the rainbow, and another with streets made out of sapphires, emeralds, and rubies. Every time, Rose would ask the Doctor if he needed the bottle of wine. Every time, he would say no. He would tell her that he hadn't found anything special or beautiful enough to drink to. And every time, Rose would just smile at him. "You'll find it," she would say. "Some day."

. . .

Rose Tyler was gone. She was really gone. The TARDIS felt empty now, especially since Donna had turned down his offer to travel with him. All that was left of Rose was a jacket, a couple bags of clothes, and memories. She was going to be with him forever. She hd promised him. The thought made the Doctor's hearts feel full. He had so many things that he had wanted to tell her, and would now never get to say. He had so many more beautiful places to show her, so many more places that she would've regarded with joy and wonder and such human emotions. The Doctor sat down in the control room and rubbed his temples. He wouldn't cry. Instead, he just leaned back against the TARDIS wall.

As he leaned back, the Doctor's leg hit a cabinet door - the same cabinet Rose had slipped the bottle of wine into so many months ago. The door swung open, and there the bottle sat. It was covered by a thin sheath of dust. It had gotten tipped over on its side, but the cork was still intact, and the deep red liquid was still there, along with the little glass Rose had taken a single sip from. He could still see the faint markings from her pink lipstick. He picked up the bottle and ran a finger over its long neck, taking some of the dust away. He wrapped a hang around the bottle and pulled the cork out.

Rose Tyler, nineteen years old. Nine hundred years of time and space, and so many humans and aliens alike, yet he had never met someone like Rose Tyler. She had just been a shopgirl, yet she had transformed into so much more right before his eyes. And God, he loved her, and she was beautiful in every way.

With shaking hands, he poured half a glass of wine in the dusty glass. He raised it to his lips, and tipped it back. The alcohol coated his throat and burned, but it tasted good. It was like all things Earth and Rose combined. The Doctor longed to take another sip. Maybe he could drown out some on the pain, make some of the hurt go away. But, he knew he never would, because Rose Tyler never would. She would have only taken one sip.

He knew in that moment that Rose had been right - he had found something beautiful to drink to. He poured another half-glass, and this time, he swished it around and admired the colors before raising the glass up slightly.

"Rose Tyler," he whispered. "For you."

And he drank.

**Reviews are loved and appreciated. Thanks for reading!**


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